1954 Wilson

I'm rapidly approaching my 600th restoration on the blog.  I have just a handful more to go, in fact.  You would think I would have surely covered all of the more common watches by now, which I probably have.  However, it's interesting that I'm just getting to my next project - because it's a fairly ubiquitous model.

The 1954 Wilson was produced through 1960 and even longer when you consider it was also used by the Awards Division.

Originally the Wilson was outfitted with a 12/0 sized 753 movement, as indicated by the 19 jewel remark in the catalog depiction.  There were only two 19 jewel movements in Hamilton's lineup at that time and the 754 was used in solid gold models.

In mid-1955 the Wilson received the newly introduced 22 jewel 770 movement and it stayed that way for the duration.  By 1960 the only thing that changed on the Wilson was the price tag... it went up a few bucks. 

I have tried many times in the past to land a Wilson but it seemed someone has always out bid me at the end.  However, I finally got one recently and it could be because it was a bit beat up looking.  Although the crystal is scratched up considerably, the case looks to be in better shape.  The dial looks good too, although it's hard to tell sometimes when the crystal is a wreck.

The back of the 10K gold filled case is in nice shape too.  There's a hint of wear to the corners of the case back but nothing too distracting.

The dial has a dull haze to it that indicates to me it's likely never been refinished.  It doesn't really need to be cleaned either, maybe just a little to get the 14K numerals to shine better.

The 770 movement looks very good - that's a bit of a surprise because I didn't see any watchmaker marks inside the case back.  This watch has obviously been used a lot, based on the outside condition but the inside looks great.

While everything is being cleaned I will prep a new glass crystal for installation.

Everything is completely disassembled in order to be cleaned and once it's all dry I can put it back together with fresh lubricants.

Before I can put the balance back on I need to installed the balance jewels in the main plate.  There are two of them for each end of the balance staff. One supports the sides of the staff then there's a cap jewel to cover the end.  The cap jewels are like tiny plates and there is a rim on one side.  You can see both of these cap jewels have the rims facing up... that side goes against the other jewel when they are installed.

The newly reassembled movement is now ticking away with good motion.  It's off to the timer to see how well it's running.

Good news and bad news, I guess.  Good news is it's running cleanly with good amplitude.  The bad news is the beat error is a bit high.  3.0ms is my usual upper spec limit and the closer to zero the better.  4.9ms is too high to let slide.

Adjusting the beat error on this style of balance is a delicate operation.  You need to rotate the brass collet that holds the hairspring to the balance staff so that you can effectively reposition the hairspring stud relative to the balance wheel.  You have to do this without the balance installed in the watch so there's a bit of trial and error involved.  Based on the position of the roller jewel on the other side of the balance, my guess is I need to move the hairspring stud a little counter clockwise so the silver-colored stud is closer to the balance wheel arm.

Nailed it on the first try.   I'll let it run for a little while before I try to slow it down.

My merciless light tent reveals every flaw on a watch and this Wilson doesn't have too many.  The dial appears more splotchy in my photo than it is in real life.  It's actually a very pleasing, authentic-looking dial.  Paired with a fresh glass crystal and a new genuine lizard strap, this Wilson is ready for 60 more years of wrist time.